French Chinon Apple Tart Delight

1. Make the Red Wine Jelly

• Ingredients: Red wine, jam sugar, star anise, clove, cinnamon stick, allspice, vanilla pod and seeds.
• Method:
  • In a medium saucepan, combine red wine, jam sugar, star anise, clove, cinnamon stick, allspice, and the scraped vanilla pod seeds.
  • Stir the mixture together and heat gently over low heat until the sugar dissolves.
  • Increase the heat and let it boil for 20 minutes until the liquid reduces and becomes syrupy.
  • Once reduced, strain the mixture into a small, sterilised jar.
  • Let the jelly cool completely. The jelly can be stored in the fridge for up to 1 month.

2. Prepare the Pastry Circles

• Ingredients: Ready-rolled puff pastry, light brown sugar.
• Method:
  • Take the puff pastry out of the fridge and leave it at room temperature for 10 minutes to soften slightly.
  • Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/gas 4.
  • Unroll the pastry and cut out two 13cm circles using a plate as a guide.
  • Place the pastry circles on a non-stick baking sheet.
  • Sprinkle each pastry circle with 1 tbsp of sugar.
  • Heat the grill to high and place the pastry under the grill for 5 minutes to caramelise the sugar.
  • Watch carefully to prevent the sugar from burning.
  • Remove from the grill and allow to cool. These can be prepared ahead of time and kept covered in the fridge.

3. Prepare the Apples

• Ingredients: 2-3 eating apples (such as Pink Lady), light brown sugar.
• Method:
  • Peel, quarter, and core the apples.
  • Cut the apples into 2mm-thin slices.
  • Arrange the apple slices on top of the caramelised pastry circles.
  • Sprinkle the remaining sugar over the apples.

4. Bake the Tarts

• Method:
  • Place the prepared tarts in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, until the pastry is golden and cooked through, and the apples are tender and slightly caramelised.
  • Once done, remove the tarts from the oven and allow them to cool slightly.

5. Finish with Red Wine Jelly

• Ingredients: Red wine jelly (from step 1).
• Method:
  • In a small pan, warm 3 tbsp of the red wine jelly with 1 tsp of water over low heat to make it runnier.
  • Brush the warm jelly over the top of the tarts for a glossy finish.

6. Prepare the Cardamom Crème Fraîche

• Ingredients: Crème fraîche, icing sugar, ground cardamom.
• Method:
  • Sift the icing sugar and ground cardamom over the crème fraîche in a bowl.
  • Mix well to combine.

7. Serve the Tarts

• Method:
  • Carefully lift the warm tarts onto serving plates.
  • Serve each tart with a dollop of the cardamom crème fraîche on the side.

Tips:

• Leftover Red Wine Jelly:
  The recipe makes more jelly than you need for the tarts, so save the leftovers! You can use the jelly in other baking, serve it with cold meats, or simply spread it on toast.

• Get Ahead:
  You can make the red wine jelly ahead of time and store it in the fridge for up to a month. The cardamom crème fraîche can be made in advance and stored covered in the fridge. The tart pastry bases can also be prepped and caramelised earlier in the day, then stored on a tray with parchment until ready to assemble.

Nutrition per Tart:

Each tart, with the crème fraîche, contains approximately 852 kcal, 38g fat, 18g saturated fat, 114g carbs, 60g sugars, 2g fibre, 10g protein, and 1.3g salt.